Pages

Thursday, January 12, 2012

"The Keeper" Blog Tour & Contest

About the book:

Julia Lapp has planned on marrying Paul Fisher since she was a girl. Now twenty-one, she looks forward to their wedding with giddy anticipation. When Paul tells her he wants to postpone the wedding--again--she knows who is to blame: perpetual bachelor and spreader of cold feet, Roman Troyer, the Bee Man.

Roamin' Roman travels through the Amish communities of Ohio and Pennsylvania with his hives full of bees, renting them out to farmers in need of pollinators. He relishes his nomadic life, which keeps him from thinking about all he has lost. He especially enjoys bringing his bees to Stoney Ridge each year. But with Julia on a mission to punish him for inspiring Paul's cold feet, the Lapp farm is looking decidedly less pleasant.

Can Julia secure the future she's always dreamed of? Or does God have something else in mind?

About Suzanne:
Her interest in the Amish began with her grandfather, W.D. Benedict, who was raised Plain. She has many, many Plain relatives living in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, and travels back to Pennsylvania, as well as to Ohio, a couple of times each year for research.

Suzanne has a great admiration for the Plain people and believes they provide wonderful examples to the world. In both her fiction and non-fiction books, she has an underlying theme: You don't have to "go Amish" to incorporate many of their principles--simplicity, living with less, appreciating nature, forgiving others more readily-- into your life.

When Suzanne isn't writing or bragging to her friends about her first new grandbaby (!), she is raising puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. To Suzanne's way of thinking, you just can't take life too seriously when a puppy is tearing through your house with someone's underwear in its mouth.

When I first received this book for review, I had no idea what "The Keeper" was referring to. When I found out it was about a beekeeper who visits Amish farms so that his bees can pollinate their orchards, I was fascinated. I had never heard of that before, and I was interested in the Bee Man's history.

The story is told from the point of view of each of the many characters in this book, but it was fairly easy to keep everything straight. I always enjoy getting to see what is happening from the perspectives of both of the main characters, and this book took that a step farther by including the other characters. I especially liked that the 'voice' of M.K. was just right for an eleven year old.

I enjoyed The Keeper very much. Amish fiction as a genre is definitely growing on me, and this book helped that cause a lot. It was easy to read, it kept my interest, and I liked the characters. The ending was bittersweet (and pretty difficult for me to read), but I respect the author for deciding to have the story go that way.

I look forward to reading more about the Lapp family from Stoney Ridge in the next books in this series.

During 1/3-1/17 you can enter to win an iPad2 from Suzanne and connect with her on January 17th at The Keeper Facebook Party!

﻿

During the giveaway one Grand Prize winner will receive a Prize Pack valued at
$600:

A brand new 16 KB iPad 2 with Wi-Fi

A $25 gift certificate to iTunes

A copy of The Keeper

But wait there's more! Just click one of the icons below to enter, then on 1/17 join Suzanne for The Keeper Facebook Party! During the party Suzanne will announce the winner of the "Honey" of an iPad Giveaway and host a fun book chat and give away some fun "honey" inspired prizes - It'll be 'sweet"!

Don't miss a moment of the fun. RSVP today and tell your
friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your
chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 17th!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Revell Publishing through Litfuse Publicity. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this is accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

2 comments:

Hi Sara! Thanks so much for being a part of the blog tour for "The Keeper." Glad you enjoyed it! I think you'll like M.K.'s story (book 3)...I just turned in the manuscript. I already miss that girl! Warmly, Suzanne

Thank you so much for your review and for being part of this blog tour. I'm so excited to read The Keeper, as Suzanne is a new to me author, and I've not read any books about the Amish, but I am so very curious about them and eager to learn about their way of life!